Beyond Excited
by KitTales95
Summary: Ruby struggles to keep recent suspicion a secret, meanwhile, Liam is determined to find out why Ruby is avoiding him. Post ITA. Rated T for mild language. COMPLETE.


_**/AN: Alright, so I just finished the Darkest Minds trilogy today... this was written when I first started "In the Afterlight," because the idea popped into my head and needed to be put to paper. It's set about three years after the start of the trilogy. The camps and what not have been liberated, but Cate and the others have set up the Ranch as a sanctuary for Psi kids with no where else to go. Cole's death never happened because, let's face it, none of us wanted Cole to die. So, uh, leave a review and tell me what you think!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own the Darkest Minds or any of the characters./**_

Ruby shuffled out of the tiny meeting room before Cole could catch her. She didn't feel like dealing with either of the Stewart brothers today. At the very least, not at the moment.

With a sigh, she set off toward the designated laundry room intent on distracting herself with whatever chores she could busy herself with. Hearing quick moving footsteps come up behind her, Ruby instinctively gravitated toward the right wall of the hallway. She didn't expect Vida to grab her by the arm and drag her to a nearby broom closet.

"The heck are you doing?" Ruby asked, trying to find Vida's face in the darkness of the closet. The only light was coming from the crack under the door.

Vida's outline bled with irritated anticipation, her dancing boots only accentuating her urgent eagerness. "Have you visited Granny yet?" she asked.

Ruby resisted rolling her eyes. Between skipping breakfast, dodging Cole and Liam _and_ Cate, the mandatory meeting of faculty, she hadn't had any time to talk to Chubs as Vida has suggested.

Vida took Ruby's silence as answer enough. "Why the hell not?"

"I think the point of having a top secret meeting inside a storage closet is to not let anyone outside the room know that you're having a top secret meeting inside a storage closet." Her blue haired companion looked like an angry hornet.

"If you don't do it, so help me Ruby, I will."

"How do you even know Chubs will be able to help, Vida? He's not a doctor. I'd more than likely give him a heart attack than get an answer from him." Ruby said, exasperated. Vida had been beyond persistent in her efforts to get Ruby to seek someone out. It was beginning to become tiring.

"Got any better ideas? The man is like a walking encyclopedia of medical science. Unless of course you'd _rather_ talk to Cate?"

Ruby's stomach churned at the thought. "No!" She hissed. "Cate is probably the last person I want to talk to about this."

"Then put on your big girl pants and go get an answer. You can't avoid Liam forever and Cole already thinks you're acting weird. It's only a matter of time before one of them confronts you." Vida replied.

Ruby knew that. It wasn't normal for her to avoid Liam and it sure wasn't normal for her to skip out on morning training with Cole. Any other weird happenings and Cole would find her and badger her before she had a chance to tell Liam. She didn't want Cole to know before Liam. Vida already knew and that was bad enough.

"Fine. I'll go find him right now before I go to the laundry room." Ruby told her.

"Be sure that you do. The sooner you know something the better." Vida opened the door of the closet and walked out as if nothing had happened.

Ruby sighed and exited the tiny storage room. How could she have let this happen? She had planned meticulously, she had been careful, her and Liam both. What would Cate say when she found out? And she would surely find out. The base wasn't that big and news traveled fast. Ruby couldn't even imagine what Cate's face was going to look like. She had given Ruby and Liam "the talk" herself... and Ruby had still managed to mess up.

Ruby walked down the hall toward the med room where Chubs usually spent most of his time. She kept her eyes trained on the ground as she walked, waving or allowing a nod to those that acknowledged her.

The makeshift infirmary was empty, and almost always was. Chubs enjoyed the silence and solitude and today Ruby was thankful for the emptiness.

Chubs sat at a small desk reading an old medical text book that he had found.

Ruby's heart pounded in her chest throwing itself against her rib cage repeatedly like an asylum patient teetering just past the edge of insanity. This was a bad idea, she reasoned. Vida was wrong. Ruby moved to turn away and go do her chores for the day, but Chubs had noticed her hovering in the doorway already.

"What are you doing here Ruby? Cate send you for something?" Chubs had placed a strip of stray notebook paper in his book to mark his place, his attention now completely focused on her.

Ruby turned to face him, and swallowed the bile that was rising in the back of her throat. She took a deep breath, willing her racing heart to slow. _Controlled panic. Controlled Panic. Controlled Panic._ She repeated the mantra over and over in her head. Her old League instructor would have been proud.

"Ruby?" Chubs was walking toward her now, his features carrying a semi-worried air to them. "You okay? You look a little pale..."

She took a deep breath. "I had a question to ask and I didn't know who else to go to." Ruby said finally.

"So ask it," Chubs motioned for her to continue.

Ruby hesitated. "How can someone tell if they're pregnant?"

Chubs thought for a moment. "Well, from what I've read, it's different for everyone. Generally they'll miss their cycle, they may feel sick or dizzy, have a sore chest area, the list goes on and on. Why do you—" His rambling spout of information cut off abruptly with a sick choking noise. "No, Ruby please tell me you're not asking for you. Please tell me Liam is not that big an idiot!"

He looked as if Cole had thrown out his favorite book to make room for something Chubs deemed less important. Horrified and angry. That look made Ruby want to dig a hole and hide.

"I get that you and Liam are all happy go lucky in LaLa Land but now is not the time for a baby, Roo!"

"Gee, you think? No, Charles. Liam and I totally planned this. Oh, hey! It's the middle of a technically recovering apocalypse — let's have a baby!" Ruby wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to get body to stop shaking.

Chubs' eyes softened when he picked up on Ruby's terrified demeanor. He sighed and ran a hand down his face. Ruby looked shocked when he spoke again. "When?" he asked.

Ruby looked at him with a blank expression and blinked. "When what?"

Chubs fidgeted. "...you know... when did you and Liam..." he cringed, "seal the deal?"

Ruby felt her face go scarlet. "Why do you want to know?"

Chubs looked just as mortified that he had asked. "I read somewhere that that's something a doctor would ask a possibly pregnant woman." He was still cringing. The thought of his two best friends making a baby disturbed him deeply. "Please just forget I said anything."

"I wasn't expecting a lot of accurate information... I know you're not a real doctor. Vida just thought asking you would be better than going to Cate." Ruby let her voice trail off. She was staring at her shoes again.

"You might have to go to Cate. The only way to know for sure is if you get tested. I don't have any tests here and if you are carrying Stewart spawn, there's no way I'm letting you go on a supply run. Liam would skin me alive." Chubs hesitated. "She would probably be able to help you more than I could... She was an adult before IAAN and the camps so she probably knows more about this topic than I do... Not to mention she's a girl. I've got the wrong anatomy for this conversation — you said Vida sent you? What the heck was she thinking?"

Ruby reached out and grabbed Chubs' arm bringing him back to the present. "Calm down, you're right. It was a dumb idea. But I trust you..."

"If you trust me then you'll let me call Cate. I don't know how to deal with this type of thing, Roo." Chubs replied, his dark eyes pleading.

She hesitated. "Fine..."

Chubs went back to his desk and picked up the Chatter, paging Cate to the room with a single text. The room was relatively silent as they waited. Finally, when the silence was broken, it was Chubs who broke it.

"Does Lee know?" he asked quietly, eyes on his feet. Chubs leaned back against his desk to keep himself from fidgeting.

"No... Liam doesn't know anything yet."

"How did Vida find out?"

"We were arguing over what the best plan for a supply run was two days ago and..." Ruby fidgeted a little before continuing, "I almost puked on her..."

Chubs went wide eyed. "And she didn't try to kill you?"

"No... I made it to a trash can in time. But that's how she figured it out. She's been badgering me ever since. I didn't even think of it until she said something..." Ruby hesitated again, sliding her glance to look at her companion. "Chubs... what if I am?"

Before Chubs could answer, Cate came strolling into the room. "What if you are what?" she asked.

Ruby froze.

"Roo needs a test..." Chubs said, dancing around Cate's original question.

Cate's expression went from one of calm to one of concern. Her eyes scanned over Ruby frantically. "A test? For what? Ruby are you sick?"

"Sort of." The words left Ruby's mouth as a whisper, but Cate caught every syllable.

"Sort of? Well what's wrong? Are you running a fever or feeling dizzy or something? Usually if you're sick you power through it, so it must be serious if you're coming to Charles." Cate glanced between Chubs and Ruby.

Ruby let Cate ramble on like a clucking mother hen until she couldn't take anymore. "I need a pregnancy test."

Cate choked on her sentence. "You what?"

Ruby hesitated. "Vida thinks I'm pregnant because I've been puking this week. It's probably nothing."

Cate sighed, "it might be nothing but regardless I can't let you go on any Ops until we know for sure. We need to find a pregnancy test."

"Where do you find those? I don't even know what one looks like."

"Well, I can't just take you into a regular clinic without you being billed outrageously for being a Psi kid... An over the counter test may be easy enough to find. It would involve a supply run... Olivia and a few of the other kids are planning on doing one later. I could join them and find you what you need." Cate said.

"You have more important things to do—"

"Ruby if you're pregnant we need to prepare properly for that. We can't do that if we don't know. And I don't know about you, but I've never delivered a baby before. I need time to read and prepare—"

Cate cut Chubs off. "We will make sure that we are thoroughly prepared for such a thing if Ruby is pregnant and we will make sure to learn from this if she isn't. Panicking isn't going to help Charles. Take a breath."

Ruby let herself be taken into Cate's arms. "I'll take care of everything, Roo. Just relax and do your chores for today. I'll be back before you know it."

"Liam doesn't know yet. If you see him, don't let him know anything. I'll tell him when I know something." Ruby said into Cate's shoulder.

"You know I'm not going to say anything."

"I know. I'm more worried about Chubs letting it slip." Ruby said with a smile when Cate released her.

Chubs looked like an irritated goose; his feathers had definitely been ruffled. "I'm not going to say anything to Lee! He's more than likely to wrangle it out of me..."

They all laughed at that.

"Meet me back here before dinner. The test should only take a few minutes." Cate said.

Chubs and Ruby agreed and Ruby set off toward her original destination: the laundry room, two floors down.

It wasn't her favorite room in the League's building, but she enjoyed laundry. It was one of few chores that she didn't have to think about doing. She also got to be alone with her thoughts, which was rare in a place like this. The laundry room itself, however, was always damp and musty. The mildew smell had been bleached away for a while thought.

Ruby was well into folding towels when she felt someone come in and stand beside her. She didn't have to look to know who it was. "You found me. Congratulations, I can officially compare you to a blood hound now." Ruby said.

Cole was next to her, folding a towel in silence. Finally he said, "is Lee keeping you on a tight leash or something? I mean, I know the kid doesn't like me. Hell, he didn't even invite me to the wedding. But you've never brushed me off before, and I can't for the life of me figure out why you'd start now."

Ruby hesitated. If she made the wrong face or said the wrong thing, Cole would see right through her. "I'm taking a few personal days," she said.

"Personal days." Cole repeated. He'd stopped folding towels and placed both of his hands on the work table, studying her.

"Yeah. I have a few things I need to work out." Ruby replied.

Cole stared her down for a minute before saying, "What did Liam do?"

 _Controlled panic._ "What do you mean?"

"You're upset about something and trying to keep it secret. It's all over your body language. Last time you looked this flustered, he asked you to marry him." Cole said.

"Liam didn't do anything. I just need to take a break for a few days. Reground myself." Ruby said, picking up an Op uniform.

"Uh huh." More folding. "You skipped breakfast this mornin'."

"Huh?" _Controlled panic._

"You skipped breakfast this morning." Cole repeated enunciating each syllable as if he were talking to someone who didn't speak English.

"No, I didn't," Ruby protested. _Controlled panic._ Her heart beat faster in her chest. She forced herself to move calmly, her hands moving as smoothly as she could get them to. "I grabbed an apple."

"And then you put it back."

Cole was staring her down again. Ruby tried not to flinch under his unwavering gaze. She'd seen him use this technique before during interrogations. You stare at somebody long enough, start making them uncomfortable, they'll crack under the pressure.

 _Controlled panic._ "And then I grabbed an granola bar for later. What's your point Cole?" Ruby resisted the urge to fidget.

"Let me finish sweetheart, I think I got this down," the southern tilt to his voice took on a different tone when he was in interrogation mode. Somehow he became more dangerous sounding. Ruby knew just how dangerous Cole could be, him being a Red and all.

Ruby kept folding clothes while waiting for him to continue.

"You skipped breakfast, got sick in front of Vida, you're refusing to train with me, avoiding Liam, having secret meetings in the infirmary, and Cate is going on the supply run to bring back something special. All that's missing is the baby carriage, darlin'."

Ruby froze for a split second. "What are you talking about?"

Cole smirked, cocky and triumphant. "You know. You and Liam fell in love, then you got married, next comes the baby part. Jeeze, Gem, did you skip kindergarten entirely?"

If looks could kill, Cole Stewart would've been dust on the basement floor in a heartbeat. Ruby wouldn't give him the satisfaction of an answer. Instead, she turned around to remove dried laundry from the machine.

Cole continued relentlessly. "Honestly, I didn't think baby brother had it in him. How many times do you think it took? Was it more than five? I mean it head to have been, you've been hitched for six months. I, for one, am surprised it didn't happen soon—"

"For the love of God, Cole: Shut. Up." Ruby couldn't stand hearing him anymore.

"There's the Gem we all know and love." He still had that unforgiving smirk playing on his lips.

"Go screw yourself." Ruby angrily slammed a pile of clothes onto the work bench.

"Oops, looks like I hit a nerve. See, this is why I'm the bad brother." Cole replied, smoothly.

Ruby didn't respond. She trained her eyes on the work bench and kept her focus on the task at hand. The panicky feeling was fading fast and was being replaced with something more along the lines of irritation than anything else.

"Gem," the tender seriousness in Cole's voice caused Ruby to look up. Any humor in Cole's face had fled only to be replaced with something she couldn't place. "You haven't told Liam yet have you? That's why you've been avoiding him right? He doesn't know yet?"

Cole searched her face looking for an answer.

"I don't even know yet... Cate went to go find a pregnancy test for me." Ruby said at last.

"And here I am thinking she was getting prenatals..." You actually managed to hide a little something from me, Gem. I'm impressed." Cole replied.

"Pre-what?"

"Special baby vitamins that make sure your kid doesn't grow two heads and a dozen eyeballs." Cole said with a smile.

Ruby punched him in the arm. "That can't happen, liar."

She watched as Cole's face became deadly serious. "How do you know? Liam junior could come out looking like a cyclopsi alien baby with a mermaid tail."

They stared at each other for a minute. Ruby was trying to determine whether the elder Stewart brother was being serious or not. Finally his face broke into a broad grin and Ruby rolled her eyes. "You're impossible," she told him.

"So I've heard." They continued folding the clothes they had laid out in silence for the next five minutes.

"When you find out, tell Liam first. Don't let him be the last to know, even if it turns out that you aren't." Cole said.

Ruby nodded.

The blond smiled a little. "You know, if you are carrying Liam junior, you're about to make my baby brother a very happy man."

Ruby gave him a shocked expression. Liam was so great with kids. He loved them and he was a natural parent... but she didn't think that meant he wanted kids did it? They had never talked about it before, even after being together three years. Their minds were always preoccupied with something else. But now that they were faced with the situation, it had just now dawned on her that he may possibly be happy at becoming a parent.

"Well, yeah. What did you think his reaction was gonna be, Gem?" Cole said.

Ruby thought for a moment. "I don't know... I hadn't really thought about it before..."

"Oh jeeze. You were just going to ignore it and hope it went away weren't you?"

Ruby felt herself blush. "...It's possible..."

"And I thought you were the smart half of this relationship." Cole said, receiving a towel to the face. He laughed.

-x-x-x-

Liam walked into the base bunker and walked over to where Vida was stretched out taking off her work boots. "So I hear you're one of few people who has talked to my wife today."

"What of it boy scout?" Vida asked, taking a moment to look up.

"Any idea where I can find her?" Liam asked.

"Nope, sorry. Can't help yah." Vi went back to unlacing her boots without saying another word. She hoped ignoring Liam, would cause him to go away. It usually worked well enough.

"Really?"

The bluenette sighed, irritated that the younger Stewart brother was still in front of her. "Mhm. Last I saw her she was with Granny." she replied.

Liam gave a sigh. "Guess I'm gonna go find Chubs." he started walking toward the exit.

"Good luck with that!" Vida called.

Liam made it to the med room in about five minutes flat. Chubs barely glanced up from the book he was reading. "Hey, Lee. What brings you in? Looking for Ruby?"

Lee gravitated toward one of the seats in front of Chubs' desk. "Yes, I am in fact, but first, why was she in the infirmary today?"

Chubs paused for a moment but didn't look up from his book. "Yearly physical. Cate requested it be done." He replied smoothly.

Liam narrowed his eyes. "Charles Carrington Meriwether the Fourth, you and I have been friends a long time," Chubs managed to glance up at that. Liam never used his full name, let alone anything other than "Chubs."

"I might be inclined to believe you... except for the fact that Ruby had her yearly before the wedding. So now I've gotta ask myself why my best friend is lying to me and why my wife is avoiding me." Liam continued.

Chubs managed a shaky smile. "Why don't you ask her when you find her?"

"Because I'm asking _you_ now." Liam told him.

Chubs glared at the blond that was assaulting his serenity. He was fighting the urge to tell him. He hated keeping secrets and being safe and sound in the med room all this time hadn't helped.

Liam glared back. "What do you know that I don't?"

Chubs swallowed. "If I tell you, Ruby is gonna kill me..."

Lee rolled his eyes. "I swear if you don't tell me, Chubs, _I'm_ gonna kill you." He had his arms crossed over his chest.

He watched as the man in front of him took a deep breath in and released it. When Chubs spoke again, Liam didn't expect the words that came out of his mouth.

Chubs coughed awkwardly. "Vida may have suggested that Ruby may be pregnant... Cate went on the supply run to see if she could find her a test to be sure."

Liam sat with a blank expression on his face. "Lee?" He looked up to Chubs and broke into a grin.

"Lee don't give me that look. You. Can't. Say. Anything." Chubs' eyes looked panicked.

"Relax Granny," Lee said, using Vida's beloved nickname, "Ruby won't know you said anything."

Shock came over Chubs' fetures. "You! You already knew didn't you?"

Liam let out a light laugh. "She's been vomiting for almost two weeks straight. I'm not a complete moron. I had my suspicions."

Chubs glared and went back to his book. "You're an ass."

"Love you too." Liam smiled. "When will she know for sure?"

"Cate told Ruby to meet her here before dinner. That's all you're getting from me because that's all I know."

Liam stood and stretched. "Thanks for the help."

"Yep."

Liam left the med wing and headed off to the garage to take inventory of the camp's machinery until dinner.

-x-x-x-

Ruby finished with the laundry soon after Cole left. From there, she headed back to Chubs' office. She wanted the quiet before she had to actually be there. Cate was scheduled to be back any minute now anyway.

"Girl, I know you're not about to leave me out of the loop on this one." Vida strode up next to Ruby and linked her arm through her own.

"I don't know anything yet, Vi." Ruby said softly, pulling her arm close to herself.

"So Granny wasn't able to help after all?" Vida's face was just about as pouty as Vida would stand to let it get; which wasn't very much.

"No. Cate went to get a test for me. Said to meet her in the med room before dinner. I was going there now." Ruby replied.

Vida groaned. "I have to go work in the damn kitchens otherwise I would be there."

Ruby patted Vida's arm before turning down a hallway. "You'll know when I do," she called.

When Ruby got to the medical room, Cate was already there waiting for her. "How did the run go?" Ruby asked, glancing between Cate and Chubs.

Cate, despite the run, looked no worse for wear. Chubs looked like a terrified rabbit. "It went smoothly, all things considered. The pharmacy had some new things in stock. Unfortunately, all we managed to get was a bottle of Tylenol. But I was able to get you a pregnancy test." Cate held up a small box and held it out to her.

Ruby stared at the rectangular cardboard object for a few minutes and then looked back to Cate. "What do I do with it?" she asked, hating sounding so ignorant.

Cate mentally shook herself. "That's right... Sorry, sometimes I forget how little you kids have been exposed to."

Chubs, who had been silent until now, scoffed. "Yeah, that'll happen when you spend all of your teen years inside what's basically a concentration camp."

Cate ignored him and opened the box, bringing out something wrapped in white plastic. She opened it to reveal a plastic looking white and purple stick. Cate pointed to the violet cap on the end. "All you gotta do is remove this end and then pee on the absorbent part. Be sure not to hold it upside down though, or it may give a false reading. There's another one in here that we can keep if we need to do a second test in a few weeks." She explained.

Ruby looked slightly grossed out. "I have to pee on it?"

"Well, I'll be the first to admit, it would be easier if we had equipment to do a blood test or maybe a sonogram, but we don't have that luxury."

Grudgingly, she took the test and slipped into the bathroom. She couldn't believe she was in this position right now. She was supposed to be doing supply runs and coaching self defense lessons and training with Cole... not having a baby. Her heart was jumping into her throat as she took the test, and it didn't slow down when she came back out into the main room.

"How long will it take to get a result?" Chubs asked.

Cate scanned the box while Ruby paced the room. "Typically it takes two to five minutes." she said.

The next few minutes for Ruby felt like an hour and she couldn't stand still. Finally, Chubs took her gently by the shoulders. "Roo, sit down and stop pacing. You're making me nervous."

With a shaky breath, Ruby sat herself down in a nearby chair. "Sorry."

"Takes some relaxing breaths," Chubs told her. He looked to Cate. "Has the test taken yet?"

Cate glanced at the small stick that had been placed on the table, and then to Ruby who sat with her head in her hands. Cate took the test in her hands and looked at the result. "Roo," she breathed.

Ruby looked up, locking eyes with Cate.

"It's positive."

"Positive?" Ruby repeated, a blank look on her face.

Chubs looked stunned. "It means you're pregnant..." he told her.

"Yeah... I got that. Are you sure? I mean, you're not reading it wrong?" Ruby asked.

"The chances of the test behind wrong is extremely low. But if you're that concerned about it, if you haven't gotten your period in a few weeks, we can take the other one..." Cate trailed off.

Ruby took a deep breath. "No, it's alright. So what happens now?"

Cate tossed the test into the nearest trash bin. "Well typically, I'd prescribe prenatal medication to help ensure a healthy baby, but we don't have access to those. Give me a few days to think and do some research and I'll have you a treatment plan."

Ruby froze. "Without the prenatal medication what will happen?"

"Nothing really," Cate said, "really it's just extra vitamins they used to give to pregnant mothers to help them support the baby. Your body does that on its own just fine."

"So... the baby won't come out with two heads, a dozen eyes, and a mermaid tail?" Ruby was pinching the bridge of her nose.

Cate gave Ruby a horrified, confused look. "I've never heard of that happening in any normal circumstance. Ever." her eyes softened. "You and your baby will be fine Ruby. You have nothing to worry about." She smiled as Ruby gave a small sigh of relief.

"Well, actually—" Chubs got cut off.

"Look at the time, Charles. You're free, why don't you join me while I work on finishing kitchen prep?" Cate's smile shone with sunshine and daisies but her eyes were sharp as knives.

Silently, Chubs nodded and the three of them walked toward what was being used as a makeshift cafeteria.

A quick dinner of peaches and carrots, as well as a package of daily rations, was served within twenty minutes. Ruby ate slow, hoping she wouldn't upset her stomach. She watched the cafeteria hall fill and empty for the next half hour. Liam was nowhere to be found.

After Ruby had eaten as much as she could stomach, she walked back to the small room that she shared with Liam. She decided to wait there for him. She sat on the bed for about ten minutes before heading to the showers. It was a short walk, the shower rooms were just down the hall from hers.

Ruby flipped on the nearest shower head, stripping down as she waited for the water to warm. As the water cascaded down her body, she let her thoughts wander.

Was she ready for this? A baby? At only twenty years old, she had never thought about what it would be like to start a family of her own. Her mind had instead been filled with her new friends, gaining control over her abilities, and getting her life into something resembling some form of normal. But a baby?

Ruby shook her head. The thought hadn't even crossed her mind until Vida had brought it up, she leaned her head against the cold white tile of the shower room, hoping the shocking sensation would calm her thoughts.

Cole had said that Liam would be happy, even thought this had been unplanned. But she couldn't even figure out how she was going to tell him, let alone think about his reaction.

Ruby played with the small ring on her left hand. Liam had told her that he'd gotten it from a genie in a lamp, that it hadn't mattered had it? What mattered was that he loved her and he wasn't going to let anyone; PSFs, skip tracers, Clancy, President Gray, or anyone else tear them apart.

Later when they were alone, Cole told her that he had looted it from an abandoned department store and given it to Liam. It had been one of the last ones left, but as small and dainty as it was, he had thought it was perfect due to the small red gem in the middle, nestled in between two small white diamonds. The skinny, white gold band was half of a size two big, but Cole had been able to fix that in secret after one of their training sessions.

A week after Liam's proposal, a small marriage ceremony had been held in the cafeteria. Chubs had been able to find a small Bible to read from to make it seem more official, but there had been no certificate signing. To Cate's dismay, Ruby hadn't even worn white. She had, however, been bamboozled into wearing a skirt and a nice blue blouse by Vida.

"You're getting married, you can dress like it at the very least," she'd said.

Ruby smiled at bit at the memory. As small and short as the ceremony had been, it had been perfect in her eyes. And seeing Liam that happy... nothing could've made her happier. She only hoped that when she told him about this, he'd be just as happy.

With a sigh, Ruby shut off the water and dried off slowly. Once she was dressed in her makeshift pj's, she headed off toward her room. Liam was stretched out across the bed when Ruby opened the door.

He looked up. "Hey, beautiful. Where've you been?" Liam asked, sitting up.

"I needed a shower," Ruby replied sitting next to him.

"You spent all day taking a shower?" Liam smirked giving her a side glance.

Ruby rolled her eyes at the comment as Liam leaned in to kiss her. She allowed it, kissing him back in return, but she was the first to pull away. "We need to talk," she said.

Liam tried to keep his face impassive. He was never good at hiding what he was feeling, and right now, he was nervous. "About what?" he cupped Ruby's cheek hoping that would distract her from his shakiness. "Did something happen today? Is something wrong?" Crap. He was talking too much. Liam shut his mouth and clamped down on his tongue, hoping Ruby didn't notice.

Ruby, who was more nervous than Liam, if that was possible, didn't notice a thing. She took a deep, shaky breath and covered Liam's hand with her own. _Controlled panic._

"You know how I've been feeling sick lately?" Ruby started. Liam nodded, running a thumb along her cheek. "Well, earlier today, Vida suggested that I go to Chubs in the infirmary and see if he could help. He called Cate and she got me a test..." Ruby trailed off.

When she didn't continue, Liam took her by the hands. "A test for what?" he asked.

Ruby hesitated. "Pregnancy." It came out sounding more like a question than an answer.

Liam couldn't help it. His face broke into a wide grin, but he didn't say anything.

"It came back positive, Lee." She wasn't expecting him to kiss her again. Once. Twice. Ruby held onto his strong arms for support, unable to keep herself from returning his affection.

"You're sure?" he asked her when he finally pulled away.

Ruby nodded. "I'm sure," she replied.

Liam held her close, kissing her forehead. "That was definitely worth the wait." He said softly.

Ruby pulled back to look at him. Liam had no way of hiding it on his face. "You _knew_?"

Liam smiled. "Well, I had most of it figured out for myself already, darlin'. I'm blond, not blind." Ruby glared at him. "Chubs told me that Cate went on the supply run to get you a test."

She flopped onto her back with a groan. "I'm going to kill him."

Liam laid himself down next to Ruby. "It wasn't his fault, darlin'. I forced it outta him. If you're gonna kill anyone, it should be me."

Ruby glanced at Liam from her spot on the bed.

"Just keep in mind, love, if you kill me, you'll be a twenty year old widow and our baby ain't gonna have a daddy." Liam gave Ruby a smile. He couldn't help it. The fact that he could actually say the words, "our baby," put a smile on his face that rivaled that of the Joker's... just less crazy. Liam's child like giddiness was contagious. Ruby allowed herself a smile.

"I'm not gonna kill you," she responded.

Liam pulled her closer, wrapping his arms securely around his wife. "That's good, because I kinda like livin'." Ruby shuddered. Even after three years, Liam's southern drawl could still turn her insides into butter.

"And you know what else?" He whispered.

"What?" Ruby asked.

Liam moved the hand that he had kept at Ruby's side around to her abdomen. He could feel Ruby freeze at his touch, but he held his palm there, rubbing his fingers, along the soft skin of her stomach. "I am beyond excited to meet our baby."

That one statement allowed Ruby to relax. Solid confirmation that Liam was happy, lifted all, if not most, of her fears about this baby. No matter what happened, they would be okay.

Ruby and Liam stayed silent after that. Finally, she was able to fall into a deep sleep, curled up into her husband's chest.

 _ **/AN: Alrighty, so that's that. I truly loved writing with these characters and this particular fandom, and I will definitely be spinning more of these. I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a review, please. Til then! -Kit/**_


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